If you are not familiar with the Nier series of games you needn't worry, each game is just as impactful on its own as it is as part of the series. Nier Automata is a sequel to Nier and takes place thousands of years after the events of Nier and follows the story of three androids, 2B, 9S and A2 as they fight alien machines and each other in the crumbling ruins of human civilization.

Developed by PlatinumGames in 2017, Nier Automata is a post-apocalyptic action role-playing video game. Available to PC, Xbox and Playstation, it focuses on story and exploration with action packed hack and slash fighting on the side. With over 200 hours of content to explore and adore, this wild and wacky game ought to keep players occupied for days to come.

You play as each of the three main characters in turn through multiple playthroughs. Each playthrough builds on top of the progress of the last one to make a unique experience. While listening to Keiichi Okabe's utterly gorgeous soundtrack you'll find yourself lost in the alien earth of the future finding out that under the explosive violence lies a deeper story. This story is so insanely intricate and complex that even the hundreds of hours of gameplay offered to you by the game barely feels like enough to understand it all.

To start with, you play as 2B. A combat android girl who combats the robots on the frontlines of the war with her companion, 9S. All is nominal until you find a particular den of semi-sentient robots. As they attack they encounter the main villains of the story Adam and Eve who are designated by YorHa (The organisation that 2B and 9S serve) as high priority threats. From there it's a mind boggling spiral down a rabbit hole of philosophy and the exploration of ideas and crazy envions that range from eerie ruins to fantastical forests with medieval communities of robots and theme parks, grand deserts and coastlines.

While on the hunt for Adam and Eve, you encounter several mechanical bosses that you must fight and defeat to progress in the game. Each one represents a famous western philosopher and their philosophy brought to a logical extreme.  Along the way they also come across non -player-characters (NPCs) that represent specific philosophical concepts like the parts vendor robot who refuses to replace his broken leg because he is afraid that if he does do that, he will no longer be himself. This is representative of Theseus' paradox. In the end, Nier Automata is drenched in thought provoking content that will leave one pondering for hours.

In short, Nier Automata is a wild goose chase for fugitive machines through beautiful lands, filled with a wonderful cast of robots. Interacting with them will leave your mind quite occupied and your heart pumping with emotion as these robots go to mindless lengths to answer the questions humanity has long asked itself for eons... or, for the simple folk, a crazy, mindless hack and slash adventure absolutely brilliant music.